Naked protesters lie in a ‘crime scene’ in Pamplona

54 semi-naked protesters lie in a ‘crime scene’ in Pamplona to represent each of the bulls that will be killed in annual Spanish festival next week

54 animal rights activists laid down in front of the City Hall a day before of the famous San Fermin festival

The group made a fake ‘crime scene’ sticking down white tape to the floor in the shape of bulls and lying in it

The protest, which happens every year, urges organisers to stop the bloody festival, which sees bulls die

Since it began in 1924, at least 15 people and hundreds of bulls have lost their life due to the festival’s events

Dozens of naked protesters took to the streets of Pamplona, northern Spain to demonstrate against the city’s bullfighting tradition today.

Wearing nothing but underwear, bull-horns, and a fake knife in their back, 54 animal rights activists laid down in front of the City Hall a day before of the famous San Fermin festival.

The group made a fake ‘crime scene’ sticking down white tape to the floor in the shape of bulls. Fifty-four of them then lied down to represent the bulls that will die in this weekend’s festival.

Dozens of naked protesters took to the streets of Pamplona, northern Spain to demonstrate against the city’s bullfighting tradition today. Wearing nothing but underwear, bull-horns, and a fake knife in their back, 54 animal rights activists laid down in front of the City Hall a day before of the famous San Fermin festival

The group made a fake ‘crime scene’ sticking down white tape to the floor in the shape of bulls. Fifty-four of them then lied down to represent the bulls that will die in this weekend’s festival. Pictured left: a protester in the white ‘crime tape’, right: a demonstrator from behind shows a ‘knife’ in their back

During the ‘txupinazo’ opening ceremony, people participated in bull runs, music and dance, through the old city.

Demonstrations are usually held on July 5, ahead of the controversial festival starting on July 6.

Animal rights group PETA said that people travelled from Australia, Russia, the UK, Ireland, and the US to demonstrate.

In a petition calling for the tradition to be banned, the group said: ‘Young bulls who have had very little contact with humans are transported to Pamplona on a long and stressful journey.

‘The festival organisers confine them to a small pen for several days.

‘Then, they release them into a noisy, chaotic mob of people – mostly tourists – who chase the terrified animals through the narrow streets of the city.

During the ‘txupinazo’ opening ceremony, people participated in bull runs, music and dance, through the old city. Demonstrations are usually held on July 5, ahead of the controversial festival starting on July 6.

Animal rights group PETA said that people travelled from Australia, Russia, the UK, Ireland, and the US to demonstrate

In a petition calling for the tradition to be banned, the group said: ‘Young bulls who have had very little contact with humans are transported to Pamplona on a long and stressful journey’. Pictured: Bullhorns and the instrument protesters wore

An animal rights activist takes part by lying face down on the ground. Dozens of bulls die in the festival every year, while there have been 15 recorded human deaths since the festival began in 1924

The centuries old bullfighting tradition, made famous globally in Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises, has long been a contentious issue in Spain, with protesters coming to demonstrate on July 5 every year

The Canary Islands became the first Spanish region to pass a ban on the ‘barbaric’ tradition in 1991. Twenty years later, Catalonia followed suit. But bullfights still happen every year in northern Spain, with protests against it a regular occurence

‘The bulls often crash into walls or lose their footing, sometimes breaking bones’.

‘And that’s not the end of it. Later that day, they’ll be tormented to death in the bullring.

‘At least 48 bulls will be barbarically stabbed to death during the festival. The mayor of Pamplona needs to stop this bloodbath’.

The festival sees more than 1000 daredevils ‘chased’ by the bulls down the city’s cobbled streets for four minutes.

While pro-bullfighting groups have fought against restrictions, getting the tradition protected under Unesco’s cultural heritage list, fights are still on the decline. Bur activists, such as the one pictured, want them to stop all together

There were 810 fights in 2008, but that number fell more than half to just 369 last year. Peta say there will be 56 bulls killed this weekend

Animal rights protesters demonstrate for the abolition of bullfights one day before the start of the San Fermin festival. Activists hold up a sign that reads ‘Bulls die a bloody death in Pamplona’

Dozens of bulls die in the festival every year, while there have been 15 recorded human deaths since the festival began in 1924.

The centuries old bullfighting tradition, made famous globally in Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises, has long been a contentious issue in Spain.

The Canary Islands became the first Spanish region to pass a ban on the ‘barbaric’ tradition in 1991. Twenty years later, Catalonia followed suit.

While pro-bullfighting groups have fought against restrictions, getting the tradition protected under Unesco’s cultural heritage list, fights are still on the decline.

There were 810 fights in 2008, but that number fell more than half to just 369 last year.